The change
by ToxicSuicide
Summary: Laura moves from LA to NJ living in a foster home with Frank Iero. How will she cope with a new home and family? Sucky summary but R&R please! First fanfic
1. Chapter 1

I pushed my trolley through the bustling airport craning my neck for the person holding the sign with my name. I found a tall young looking woman holding a sheet of card with my name written thickly on it. She was looking through the crowd and I automatically slowed down to a sluggish pace.

I put my head down and dragged my feet around the corner of the barrier and over to where she was still looking for me. I tapped her on the shoulder and she jumped spinning around to smile at me.

'Laura,' I said sticking my hand out to her. She shook it firmly still smiling at me and I shifted uncomfortably.

'I'm Linda Iero your new foster mom,' she smiled warmly. I nodded and twisted the corners of my mouth up in an attempt at a smile. Her smile faltered but she started leading me through the crowds talking the whole time. I didn't pay any attention to what she was saying as she walked into lift. I stopped outside and chewed on my lip nervously.

She looked at me expectantly and I pushed the trolley in before finding the stairs and legging it up them to arrive there just as the lift did. Linda pushed my trolley of bags out looking for me as I stood at the door to the car park waiting for her.

'Why didn't you take the lift?' she asked. I just shrugged and took the trolley off her whilst she walked still talking to her car. We piled all of my bags in the trunk and backseats before climbing in and taking shotgun. She was still talking the whole way and I barely listened to a word she said until we arrived at the house.

I climbed out lifting two bags in one arm each and putting the duffel bag around my shoulders. As an attempt to be useful, even though I had lived the past seventeen years taking care of myself, she took my small carry on backpack.

'Frank! We're back,' she called out as soon as she opened the door. She had probably spoken about him on the way but I had no idea of who he was or what relation he even had to her. At first I assumed it was her partner but when I saw the boy I tried not to let my jaw drop open.

He was gorgeous with jet black spiky hair and a fringe covering one of his eyes. He had black eyeliner thinly applied around his hazel eyes and a lip and nose ring. He was wearing gray skinny jeans with rips in the knees and a baggy red tee with "Homophobia is gay" written across it. He had a plain black hoodie and a pair of skeleton gloves in Misfits style with a pair of battered red converse on his feet.

'Uh, hey, I'm Frank,' he said offering his hand for me to shake. I looked down at the bags in my hand as if to say _you're insane if you think I can shake your hand too. _He gave me an awkward smile before leaning against the wall.

Linda started talking on again and I couldn't help but tune her out again. After a few seconds she started walking and I wished I had listened in when Frank followed her and I was left not knowing what to do.

'Um, actually do you want me to show you to your room?' Linda asked. Frank chewed his lip a little and she looked over at him. 'You did get it ready, right?'

'Kinda,' he mumbled.

'Go and get it finished,' she said rolling her eyes. He smiled and kissed her cheek before running up the stairs again. 'Would you like something to eat or drink, Laura?' she asked turning back to me. I shook my head still holding my bags tightly. 'You can put those down honey. Hand them here.'

I passed my bags to her and she stacked them up at the end of the stairs. I stood shuffling my feet until she ushered me into the kitchen and sat me down fussing over me and giving me food and drink even though I declined each time.

'Mom, stop forcing her. Come on, I'll show you to your room,' Frank said adding the second part to me in a monotonous tone waving me over to him. He took two of my bags and I took the last one with my carry on as we headed up the stairs. He glanced back at me a few times and brought me into a room at the back of the house.

It wasn't big or small. It was just the perfect size. There was a window facing into the back yard and a single bed up against the corner by it. There was a chest of drawers, closet, desk and chair arranged along the largest wall. It was simple but it was all I needed for the next six months.

'So, do you need a hand packing or should I clear off?' he asked leaving my bags down. I left mine down next to them and looked around the room for a bit before shrugging my shoulders.

I walked over to the bed and stood by it staring down at it for a second before sitting down. Frank sighed and walked over sitting down next to me.

'Okay, so I'm guessing that you don't like talking or anything and that's cool, just find some way to communicate,' he said with his deep and seductive voice. There was definitely a New Jersey accent to it. 'Oh and don't worry if my mom acts over enthusiastic and kind of creepy. But I'm warning you now that she will be watching every single movement you make and word you say.'

I nodded and leant back letting out a deep sigh.

'So, do you want to unpack? I've been given the role of attaching you to my hip for the next week so sorry but you can't get rid of me,' he said smiling.

'Okay,' I said standing up and heading over to my bags. I sat down next to the duffel bag and fiddled with the lock until it opened and I could unzip it. I pulled out everything and organised it neatly across the floor in piles of where it would go in the room or closet.

'Perfectionist?' Frank asked helping me organise everything. I nodded and opened the second suitcase then the third. We went through all of the clothes leaving the other things to the side so that I could sort those through separately.

I looked through the chest of drawers trying to find the right drawer for the right clothing. I grabbed the few tees I had and put them in one of the larger drawers then put pyjamas in another. I organised everything until it was neat and perfect.

'Right, now the other stuff,' he said looking down at about one and a half cases of sketches and notebooks. I blushed slightly and shook my head at him. 'Do you want me to leave?' he asked. I nodded and he smirked at me. 'Okay, come down in a couple of hours or my mom will come and quiz you.'

'Thanks,' I whispered. He shrugged and walked out of the room shaking his head and muttering something under his breath. I shut the door behind him and started organising everything then reorganising it when it didn't look right.

I used to live in Los Angeles, California. Land of the rich and famous. The only problem was that because of that, my parents had to make sure everything about me was perfect. If I didn't turn out how they wanted me to be I would be punished in some way. By my eighteenth birthday they were going to decide what to do with me. So instead they got rid of me now. When I was the opposite of what they wanted me to be.

I wasn't skinny, pretty, tanned or preppy. I wasn't a cheerleader, I didn't have big breasts and I wasn't in to performing arts. I wasn't willing to do whatever they wanted when they wanted and I worked hard to get straight grades.

So I was the  
most hated out of their children. There were four of us-two girls and two boys- and they hated me the most. I was the trouble child. The youngest one who was least willing to completely change my image for them.

I could change my appearance but I wouldn't change my personality. So I would be punished whether it was through starvation, labour or a more abusive method.

My hand had a long burn mark from when they had "accidentally" tipped boiling water on my hand when I was reaching for the dishes. I hadn't been able to get it under cold water so I had a blistering burn for a few weeks until the blisters went and left me with just the burn scar.

I looked down at my hand and traced over the area where it was badly scarred. I sighed heavily and covered it back up with my sleeves. I didn't want them to notice so soon really.

'Laura?' someone called knocking on the door. I walked over and opened it to see Linda standing in the door with Frank behind her leaning against the wall. 'Would you like to come down for something to eat?'

'I'm not hungry thank you,' I said. They both looked at me quizzically. I wasn't going to say anything unless they asked me why.

'Okay then, well if you want anything just let me know,' Linda said walking off as the phone rang. She greeted them warmly at first before dropping her voice to a hushed whisper.

I knew she was talking about me but after a five and a half hour flight to come to the other side of the America I wasn't up to going down and acting normal anyway.

'Sure you're okay?' Frank asked barely looking at me. I nodded briefly and he shrugged giving me a mock salute as he walked past. That boy was insane.

I walked back into my new room and looked out of the window which led onto a small porch roof. I climbed out and sat there staring up at the sky. It relaxed me knowing that my siblings were looking up at the same sky as I was and seeing the same moon.

'You stole my spot,' a voice said from somewhere to the right of me. I jumped at the sudden noise and looked over to see light coming form the room next to mine shadowing across Frank's face. I tried not to marvel at how beautiful he looked with the artificial light on one side of his porcelain face and the moonlight on the other side.

'Sorry,' I muttered shifting over half a metre.

'Really I'm not that fat,' he laughed. I smiled as he sat down where I had been sitting. 'So what do you think so far? We're all nutcases really so we're probably not the most pleasant of people to live with.'

'You're great,' I said lying back and staring up at the sky picking out constellations. I loved doing this at home when I couldn't sleep at nights. I would go out onto the rooftop terrace or the balcony and just stare at what I could see of the sky.

'So what do you want to do tomorrow? It's the weekend so we can go to the mall or the park or whatever,' Frank suggested. I shrugged my shoulders and he looked uncomfortable. 'You know you have to give me something to work with.'

'Sorry,' I said. He shook his head and lay back with me. 'If you look there, you can see Delphinus really clearly,' I said pointing at the constellation. He shifted around so his head was next to mine and squeezed one eye shut following the direction of my finger to the constellation.

'Oh yeah, that's pretty cool,' he said even though he didn't sound impressed.

'You know you don't have to pretend,' I said staring up at the sky and taking a deep breath in. 'It's too quiet here.'

'It must be. So what's it like in Los Angeles?' he asked. I shrugged again and stared at the crescent moon.

'Busy and bright. The beaches are good though and the weather is nice even though it can get too hot sometimes,' I said honestly. He smirked and chuckled lightly.

'But seriously, what do you want to do tomorrow? I can't leave you at home with my mom. She's amazing but she can be pretty intimidating when it comes to work stuff,' Frank said looking over at me. I turned my face and looked into his gorgeous hazel eyes with his fringe falling away form his face.

'I don't mind,' I whispered trying not to get lost in his beautiful eyes. He didn't respond for a minute then cleared his throat and turned his face away.

'How about a tour around town?' he asked. I nodded along to keep him pleased seeing as I didn't know him, and I had barged in on his life. 'Well, if you don't mind I'll have to bring a couple of people along so we don't get attacked. It's obviously less likely to happen when you're in a bigger group.'

'That's fine,' I said nodding. He gave me a brief smile. He shifted around uncomfortably for a little while before letting out a long sigh and shutting his eyes.

'Listen, I'm not good at all this stuff but if you need to talk to anyone I'm right next door,' he said standing up and climbing back in his window. I think he expected me not to reply which is why he didn't wait.

After another few hours lying out on the roof I climbed back into my new bedroom and looking around at the unfamiliar surroundings I climbed into bed fully clothed and lay all night staring up at the ceiling.

When morning came, the sun wasn't bright like I expected it to be. I couldn't hear the busy people running around outside and the cars already roaming the streets. I couldn't hear the sound of my parents and siblings running around and rushing back and forth.

It disconcerted me to the point where I was pacing back and forth across my new room. I changed into a fresh change of clothes and sat at my desk with my sketchpad in front of me.

At first I sketched the city where I had grown up. Then in the space I had towards the bottom corner of the page I drew Frank finding his beautiful features perfect to draw. I shaded over the picture leaving a paler area around Frank's body and darker shades on his clothes.

'That's really good,' someone said from behind me. I jumped and slammed the book shut spraying pages out in the process. I fumbled around picking the stray pieces off of the floor and looking up to see Frank standing over me looking amused. 'Was that me?' he asked as I neatly placed the pages back inside the book. I stuttered for a second before hanging my head and hunching my shoulder giving him a slight nod. He walked over to me and looked over my shoulder reaching out to the sketchbook. I snatched it away and stacked it amongst my other books.

'Please don't look at them,' I said quietly. He shrugged and nodded helping me push everything into perfect piles.


	2. Chapter 2

I gave him a scared smile and he put an arm around my shoulders.

'Sure, come on though. We need some breakfast,' he stated pulling me down the stairs to where Linda was cooking some sausages. I wrinkled my nose at the food trying not to puke at the smell. 'Mom, do we have any veggie stuff?'

'Sorry, you can go out and get something. Laura would you like some sausages?' she asked turning around to face us. I watched Frank grumble his way over to the fridge and pull out some juice. He poured himself a glass and drank it in one go before I had the chance to find my voice.

'Vegetarian,' was my one word reply.

'Oh,' she said looking a little shocked. 'Well I'll give you both some money to get some food when you go out.' She looked around awkwardly and grabbed some money from her purse before handing it to Frank. 'Sorry about this.'

I shrugged at her as Frank slipped his shoes on gesturing for me to do the same. I quickly tied on my white Doc Martins and walked out after Frank. He looked me over and gave me a smile.

'Nice outfit,' he said. I nodded and wrapped my arms around myself unused to the cool breeze and colder climate. He sighed and shrugged out of his thick hoodie and put it over my shoulders giving me a warm smile with it.

'Thank you,' I muttered. He started walking a little faster and looked over his shoulder a few times and I felt my stomach tighten. He put a hand on my elbow and started guiding me through the streets until we reached a small diner at practically a sprint.

'Sorry, you'll get used to it,' he said walking in and finding a booth. I nodded and handed his hoodie back to him which he gratefully pulled on. He handed me the menu which I stared over for a few minutes before putting it down.

A waitress came over and took our orders smiling sweetly at Frank. I watched as her eyes raked over him focusing on his lap for a moment too long. When she walked away I looked at Frank with the question in my eyes. He raised his eyebrows and looked back at her for a moment before looking at me and bursting out laughing. I gave him my best smile which was just my lips turning up slightly at the edges.

He looked back at me and laughed even more at my bad attempt to give him a smile. I frowned at him and he tried to shut his mouth.

'I'm sorry but that's ridiculous,' he laughed. I raised my eyebrows and he shrugged at me taking a sip of the water she had brought over for us.

'Well do you have a girlfriend?' I asked. He looked shocked for a minute before giving me a sly smile.

'Is this the LA way of asking someone out?' he smirked. I shook my head at him in a massive objection. 'Well no, I don't.'

'Then it's not that ridiculous,' I said. He looked at me before shaking his head and taking another long gulp of the water. He gave me a long and pointed look as if he was analyzing my face for a little bit making me uncomfortable. I was saved by the food arriving.

Frank tucked into his sandwich happily munching on the food. Meanwhile I picked at the edges stuffing it all into a napkin. As soon as Frank had finished all of the food he looked up at me where I was leaning back in the seat with only a quarter of the sandwich left. He pointed at it asking for permission which I granted. He ate quickly and I felt repulsed by his ability to eat so easily and quickly.

I stood up and excused myself to go the bathroom with the napkin of food in my pocket. I walked in to the ladies and stuffed it in the bin before washing my hands to make it look like I had actually used the bathroom. I waited a minute before walking back out and finding the waitress standing next to Frank with her hands on her tiny waist and smiling down at him. He handed her the note and she walked over to the register leaning over the counter and waiting for him to come over and collect the change.

I walked over to the counter taking the change and returning it to Frank. He looped his arm with mine and gave me a smile before leaning close to me and whispering in my ear.

'Just play along.'

I nodded as he moved his hand to lace it with mine giving me a flirtatious smile as we walked out. I kept close to him to make it look better and because I like the feeling of being close to him.

We were halfway back to his house when a small battered car pulled up beside us on the street. The passenger rolled down the window and looked at us.

'Need a ride?' he purred.

'Mikey you're sick,' Frank laughed. I looked at him for an explanation. He just smiled and ran over to the other side of the car gesturing for me to climb in. I did as soon as he had got in.

I wrinkled my nose slightly at the smell of cigarettes and coffee that welcomed me as soon as I took a breath in. I looked at the driver trying to judge whether or not I trusted him in the front seat.

He was bobbing along to the Queen Song on the radio letting his jet black shoulder length hair bump around. He turned his head to look back at us at the stoplights giving me a warm smile. His face was ghostly white and his eyes were a hazel colour, he had high cheekbones and a slightly square chin. He was wearing a leather jacket and a black tee with some black skinny jeans. The boy next to him had dirty blonde hair which was straightened to fall over his eyes thickly rimmed with glasses. He had similar features around his hazel eyes and high cheek bones on his thin face. He had a hyper smile and was bouncing along to every song on the radio letting the hood of his hoodie flop around manically.

'Guys this is Laura, this is Gerard and Mikey,' he said gesturing to the one in the driver's seat then the passenger seat. I gave them a half wave and they both smiled back at me kindly.

'So you're the new kid, huh?' Gerard asked looking back at me in the mirror. I nodded as confirmation feeling all eyes on me. 'And you're stuck with Frank? Man that sucks,' he said smirking at him whilst Frank thumped the back of his shoulder.

'Oh, and we're giving her a tour of the town,' Frank said making Gerard grin even wider. 'And you're not allowed any more coffee,' he added turning Gerard's grin into a pout. 'And for at least today try to act like a normal human.'

'You're asking for the impossible Frank,' Mikey said grinning goofily at Gerard who gave him a glare as soon as he stopped the car. When I looked out we were outside Frank's house with Linda staring out of the window at us.

I quickly climbed out waiting for the others as they bickered the whole time. Halfway up the drive Mikey tackled Gerard to the floor and they laughed as they wrestled. Linda opened the front door and rolled her eyes at the scene on the floor whilst Frank just laughed.

**So yeah this really bad but yeah okay...well R&R**


	3. Chapter 3

I stood at the bottom of the porch steps waiting for the guys. Frank followed me up the drive looking back at the two before shaking his head and walking inside. I followed him in and found Linda in the kitchen waiting for us. She gave me a warm smile and then gripped Frank's arm pulling him upstairs sounding cross with him.

'Where'd Frank go?' Mikey asked walking in. I pointed to the stairs and he nodded turning on the coffee maker. Gerard skipped in and looked around before moving over to the coffee maker and grabbing a mug standing really close to it.

After seeing the two fight some more I decided to head upstairs and find a thicker hoodie to wear. I walked straight into my room and gently lifted out the pile of hoodies I had in my draw searching for the thickest.

I pulled it on and looked over myself. I was in my green Doc Martens with black skinnies. I had a black tee on with an electric green lightning bolt on it. I had a thick black Misfits hoodie on and my hair was hanging in its usual loose blonde curls around my waist.

'Are you ready?' Frank asked standing by my door. I nodded and walked out after him feeling a tense vibe coming from him. Linda smiled at me and gave us some money and a curfew as well as giving the guys tern instructions to stay away from some areas and from any dodgy looking people.

We all piled into Gerard's car, this time with Frank riding shotgun. I sat in the back staring out of the window and picking out all of the things which weren't like LA. I didn't know whether I liked it or not. I suppose time will tell.

'So Laura, where do you want to go?' Gerard asked. I shrugged just as Frank turned around and gave me a look. I widened my eyes and gave him an innocent _what_ look.

'You know you're going to have to talk more than one word to get though the day,' he said smiling at me lightly. I crossed my arms over my chest and shrugged again. 'You can have my spot on the roof if you talk properly.'

'Why are you bribing her with your spot?' Gerard laughed.

'Because I have no idea what she actually likes,' he said turning to Gerard.

'You know she can hear you,' Mikey said rolling his eyes at me. I leant back in the seat and stared out of the window again letting out a long sigh.

The guys were rambling on for ages whilst I zoned out thinking about life back in LA where I had no friends and no one to really miss me. But I missed it back there. With everything so busy and tightly packed and where everyone looked so glamorous and sophisticated or they just looked like they led normal lives away from the chaos that surrounded them. I missed the heat and the sun and the celebrities walking around.

I was snapped out of my daydream when the engine cut off. I looked outside to find myself at a mall parking lot. I looked ahead and the guys were all starting to climb out. I fumbled with my seat belt until it came undone and I could quickly jump out next to the others.

'Where do you want to go?' Frank asked me again. I sighed and frowned at him shrugging again. Gerard walked off and we all just stared after him until he came back a few minutes later clutching a Starbucks cup.

Both of the guys backed away as Gerard pulled the cap off and started guzzling down the steaming liquid.

'Hot! Hot! Hot!' he gasped flapping his hand at his mouth. They both laughed at him whilst I barely managed a smile. He looked up and glared at them before walking forward and putting an arm around my shoulder. 'Laura's my only friend,' he declared turning us around and walking out of the car park. I heard footsteps behind us and soon someone grabbed my arm and pulled me backwards.

'Never! She's one of us!' Frank yelled holding my arm.

'One of us! One of us!' Mikey chanted. Frank and Gerard both laughed and started fighting over me until Gerard let go to finish his coffee. Frank put his arm around my shoulder and looked like he was thinking for a minute.

'How about we head back to the diner and annoy that waitress?' he asked looking down at me.

'Don't you think we already annoyed her enough?' I asked.

'Hey! She speaks!' Gerard cheered making me flush pink. Mikey just laughed and punched his arm as they started walking back down the street in the direction of what looked like a park.

'Come on Laura, you have to talk or something,' Frank said jostling me around. I just shrugged my shoulders and kept looking at the floor as we walked. Frank let out a long sigh and I felt a little bad knowing that he was trying hard to adjust to some kid who just barged in on his life and started taking up his time and space and yet I was being so difficult.

'Sorry,' I muttered. He sighed again and started talking with his friends who I learned to be brothers. Gerard was the oldest and was now in Art school whilst Mikey was in our year at school.

Oh God. I forgot about school.

I was going to be the new kid who joined halfway through the year moving from the famous Los Angeles to grimy New Jersey. Everyone was going to know who I was and it was no doubt that there were already rumours being spread about me. This was going to be hell.

'Are you bored? Cause this is pretty boring,' Frank said squeezing my shoulder. I looked up and shook my head honestly even though he didn't believe me. 'Really? Because if you are just say so,' he said then laughed at his comment. I glared at him just as the waitress from this morning turned around the corner. She gave Mikey a soft smile and completely avoided Gerard giving him a filthy look like he was vermin on the floor. Frank glared back at her despite her seductive smile at him which he completely aired.

'Hey Frank,' she said in her annoyingly high pitched voice. I winced at the sound and she gave me an even dirtier look than she did Gerard.

'Hi,' he said giving her the most obvious fake smile ever.

'So uh, is this your girlfriend?' she asked forcing her gaze to me.

'Yeah,' he said squeezing my shoulder again. Mikey and Gerard looked amused and I blushed slightly even though it wasn't true.

'Oh, I haven't seen you around,' she said.

'Yeah,' Frank said obviously trying to move the conversation on.

'Well I'm Rebecca,' she said.

'Laura,' I murmured. She gave me a fake smile and I just looked at her not even bothering to waste my energy on her pancaked face. Her make up was thick and it was a wonder he could even blink with so much mascara. She had a tight fitting low cut top and a pair of short shorts on with some flats with it. I wondered how she wasn't freezing to death but then again the make up was probably giving her an extra layer of warmth.

'Well I'll see you around then,' she said after no one said anything for a while. We all nodded and walked down the road and into the park. As soon as we got within the rusting gates the three started laughing.

'Oh man that was priceless,' Gerard giggled running over to the swings. Frank let go of me to race him leaving me alone with Mikey who was still chuckling.

'So living with the vertically challenged must be…uh…fun,' Mikey said looking down at me. I shrugged and gave him a brief nod which seemed to make him uncomfortable. 'So uh, is there a reason why you're not talking or are you just not comfortable around here yet?' he asked.

I shrugged again not wanting to tell him that I was still scared that I would say the wrong thing and get punished even though my parents were on the opposite side of America.

We joined the boys at the swings where they were competing to see who could get higher up. Mikey frowned at them and then looked at the baby swings next to them. He walked over and sat on top so his butt could sink into the middle.

Seeing as I was five foot three and I was fairly slim I lifted myself up with the chains and stuck my legs through the holes lowering myself into the seat comfortably. Mikey stared at me and started laughing getting the two guys attention that started laughing when they saw me sitting in the baby swing rocking back and forth slightly.

'How do you fit in there?' Gerard laughed. I just shrugged and started spinning around letting out a long sigh. Frank looked worried for a second but shrugged it off starting to swing back and forth getting higher than Gerard had.

'Frank wins,' Mikey declared making Frank whoop and cheer.

'Shit, let's move,' Gerard said looking across the park at a group of guys loitering around in a huddled group. Everyone stood up and watched me tilt back in the seat and pull my long legs out…well long in comparison to the rest of me.

'Come here,' Frank said reaching his hand out. I moved quickly forward and he put his arm protectively around my shoulder as if he was marking his territory from the guys now staring at us.


	4. Chapter 4

We move quickly and swiftly through the park with the guys taking it in turns to glance back at them. When Frank did it he gripped onto me tighter and turned around urging everyone to walk faster. As soon as we made it out of the park I looked back seeing the group following us.

Frank looked as well and then made everyone walk even faster until we were practically sprinting like we had been earlier today. We arrived back at the mall with all three guys panting for breath.

'They're still following us you know?' I said. The three looked back and then at me and I felt Frank's grip tighten on my shoulder. I looked back at the guys who were halfway up the street and getting closer to us. One of them turned his head to talk to the others whilst still walking. We could see them all laughing and then they turned to look at me with a sadistic smile.

'Fancy leaving?' Mikey asked climbing into the car. We all nodded and quickly piled in. Gerard started driving and we all watched the guys give us their cruel smiles as we drove past them. One of them blew a kiss and winked at me and I felt my stomach twist in disgust.

'Jerks,' Frank said. 'You'll get used to it,' he said looking over at me with an apologetic look. I shrugged my shoulders and he frowned. 'So that's all you're going to say today?' I shrugged again and he let out a frustrated sigh which made me feel bad again.

'Frank why don't you stop bugging her? Laura just moved and now she's being bombarded with questions…and us,' Mikey said turning around in the passenger seat.

'Yeah, give her a break,' Gerard said taking Mikey's side. Frank frowned at them all and started pouting looking out of the window after losing the little battle. I reached across and poked him in the shoulder making him turn around to me. I gave him a slight turn up of my lips which made him smile.

After a few minutes more of rundown Laundromats and convenience stores we pulled into a small parking lot. The guys all got out looking around nervously before turning back to where I was fiddling with the belt buckle. Gerard opened my door and leant in swiftly undoing it making me blush slightly.

We walked into the music store and the whole group of us headed straight to the rock section. I picked out a Green Day CD and stared at the song list. I put it back in the rack and Frank snatched it out.

'I already have it. You can borrow it,' I said. Mikey and Gerard walked closer giving me a smile. I nodded at them whilst Frank put it back in the rack before picking out Guns n roses CD. I took it out of his hands and put it back in the rack nodding at him. He started smiling at me and put an arm around my shoulder again.

'I'm glad you're here,' he smiled. I gave him my best attempt at a smile which was just a closed mouth lopsided smile which made him grin at me. I think he realised that I was making an effort now after seeing how much effort he was putting in to make me comfortable.

We mulled around in the small store for a little while before heading next door into the comic book store. I headed straight over to the Batman novels and picked out one with the Joker smiling at me. I checked the edition and flipped through it wondering if I should buy it or not. After a few minutes of debate I sat on the floor and took my shoe off pulling out my debit card.

Mikey gave me a funny look and I just gave him my best innocent look. I put my shoe on and headed over to the till to where the geeky store owner was staring at me wide eyed. I handed him the comic and he stumbled over the price until I showed him the card. He pushed the little cardholder to me and I slipped my card in after running my hand around the edge to make sure it was genuine.

I entered my pin then slipped my card back into my shoe and retied the laces. When I stood back up I saw the guy behind the counter scribbling on a piece of paper which he slipped inside the paper bag. He handed it to me with a nervous giggle and flaming red cheeks.

'So Red, what's up?' Frank asked walking over to where I stood uncomfortably under the gaze of Red. I turned to him looking desperately at him and he slipped his hand around my waist pulling me close.

'H-hey Frank,' he stuttered still staring at me. I leant into Frank's side establishing the idea that we were in a relationship.

'Which comic did you get?' Frank asked me. I pulled out the book and Frank grinned at me. 'Nice choice,' he said.

'So uh, comics?' Red stuttered. I looked at his flushing face and felt kind of bad for the guy. There was no way he was going to get a girlfriend when he could barely get a sentence out to someone like me.

'Yeah, we come here every week,' Gerard said walking over and leaning on the counter. Mikey came up behind him looking slightly flushed and nervous. Frank and I both looked over at him and Gerard just snorted.

'What's up?' Frank asked. Gerard jerked his thumb over at some girl standing outside the store who kept glancing in at us. Mikey flushed redder and I raised my eyebrows just as Frank made a realising noise.

'Just go and talk to her. It's not that difficult,' Gerard said shoving his younger brother towards the door.

'Stop it,' Mikey said shoving Gerard away. I looked at Frank who was looking very amused now. I released myself from Frank's grip and walked outside to the girl. I could hear Frank and Gerard laughing as I stopped in front of her.

'Can I help you?' she sneered.

'Um, yeah. This is all going to come across badly but do you have a boyfriend?' I asked her. She looked shocked for a minute then glanced back in at Mikey who was facing away from the window now. She shook her head and looked back at me. 'Well do you happen to be interested in a certain blonde haired guy with glasses who is currently pretending he doesn't know me?' I asked. She smirked and looked back in blushing slightly when she nodded. 'Okay then, five seconds,' I said walking back inside.

'What are you doing?' Mikey hissed.

'Go ask her out. She likes you,' I said walking back over to where Frank stood. They all looked at me disbelievingly until Gerard started shoving Mikey towards the door. Mikey looked back hesitantly and all three guys gave him an encouraging smile.

'How come you can have a conversation with her but not us?' Frank asked. I shrugged and held the paper bag to my chest leaning against the counter. I felt eyes on the back of my head and I shifted around uncomfortably.

I heard the door open and shut and then we all watched as Mikey stood chatting easily with the girl. After a few minutes another girl showed up giving them both an entertained smile.

A few minutes later she waved goodbye and the girls walked away leaving Mikey to jog back inside and give us all a goofy grin. He spun around in circles for a couple of seconds before stopping and giggling excitedly.

Gerard held up his hand for a high five which I returned. He grinned at me and I couldn't help but give him a curtsey. Frank laughed and Mikey ran over wrapping me up in a hug. I put my arms around his middle and he giggled as he let me go.


	5. Chapter 5

We stood around for a little longer before moving off and driving back to the mall to look around. I left the bag in the car and took my card from my boot and tucked it in my pocket.

As soon as we got inside I started picking out the differences from here and Los Angeles where the malls were absolutely giant and perfectly kept with busy people walking around clutching their Starbucks.

The guys headed straight into Hot Topic and I followed willingly. I searched through the clothes wondering which ones I could and couldn't wear in a million years. Frank headed over to Gerard with a pair of fingerless gloves in his hands.

'You don't need any more,' Gerard said whilst Frank just smiled. After a bit of convincing Frank headed to the cashier with his money and as soon as we got out he put the red gloves on smiling down at his hands.

We walked around the mall messing around and having a good time when someone came over and loomed over Frank. Gerard swallowed a few times and Mikey looked nervous whilst Frank just stared at the burly guy.

'Hey faggot. Out with your boyfriends?' the guy asked moving closer to Frank. Another three guys flanked him making them even more intimidating. I looked over at Gerard and Mikey who didn't seem to be doing anything. I walked over and stood next to Frank slipping my hand into his and giving him an encouraging squeeze. 'Oh got a little emo friend?' he sneered staring down at me.

'Yeah, and what are you going to do about it?' I snarled making Frank look shocked for a second whilst the jocks regained their dominance over me. But I didn't want any of it.

'I'll show you,' he growled stepping forward and lifting me off the floor by my hoodie. I looked straight into his face with a poker face and he looked slightly intimidated.

'Don't mess with me,' I snarled. He raised his eyebrows as if challenging me. I looked down at him and filled up my lungs. I let out an ear piercing scream which turned everyone's attention to us. He dropped me quickly and I shut my mouth stumbling back into Frank's arms whilst he sneered at me.

'That won't stop me,' he hissed.

'Is there a problem here?' the mall monitor asked walking over to us. He was tall and burly and had a scary presence about him.

'Nope, we were just leaving,' the four guys said walking off glaring at us.

'Are you okay ma'am?' he asked. I nodded feeling Frank's arms tighten around me for a second. 'Well if there's any problems just, uh, shout.'

'Thank you,' Frank said whilst I just nodded. As soon as he'd left Frank let go of me and spun me around. 'What was that?' he asked. My face fell in disappointment. I had only wanted to help and get rid of those bastards before they hurt him. I mean it was the least I could do after he welcomed me into his life. 'That was amazing,' he breathed. I blushed slightly not knowing how to take a compliment.

'Holy shit! How the hell did you do that?' Mikey asked rushing over with Gerard in tow. I just shrugged and felt Frank put an arm around my shoulder again. I leant against his side whilst the guys all started quizzing me.

After a few minutes of me shrugging off comments and blushing at compliments we started walking out to the car park. We all piled into Gerard's car and the three sang along to the songs on the radio whilst I took in the grimy surroundings. For some reason it was oddly comforting.

We pulled into the drive way and everyone got out of the car and walked inside still giddy from the scene at the mall. Linda met us with a quizzical look and warm smile.

'Oh my God Laura's amazing!' Gerard laughed.

'There were these jocks and they were about to beat the crap out of me and Laura came along and screamed and the mall cop came over and they walked away! It was amazing!' Frank laughed. I blushed again clutching my comic book to my chest whilst Mikey just laughed on the sidelines. Linda stared at me and gave out a nervous chuckled before shaking her head.

'Dinner's on the table,' she said. Everyone rushed in at the prospect of food whilst I slipped upstairs and put the comic in the centre of my desk. I dawdled around upstairs for a while before walking slowly downstairs and into the kitchen.

A plate of pasta had been left out for me. I sat down in the seat next to Gerard and picked up the fork. I started shifting the food around taking one piece of pasta in my mouth and chewing slowly. I looked up and found that everyone had finished eating already and were searching for dessert. I grabbed a napkin and tipped half of my plate into it before slipping it into the bin when no one was looking. I put another piece in my mouth when they all sat back down with a bowl of ice cream each. I leant back in my seat claiming I was done. Gerard passed me a bowl which I politely declined before excusing myself to the bathroom. I knelt down on the floor by the toilet bowl and slipped my fingers down my throat.

I was disgusted that after a day in New Jersey I had managed to loose so much control. I had eaten both breakfast and dinner. Back home I wouldn't have eaten it unless it was forced into me with a tube.

I kept going until it was just a sticky white substance that left me choking and coughing. I flushed away the evidence and washed my hands and face then zipped my hoodie over my tee.

'Laura, are you okay in there?' Linda asked from the other side. I unlocked the door and nodded stepping straight past her and ran straight up the stairs and into my bedroom where I locked the door behind me. I sank onto the floor and broke down.

My entire family were back home moving on and not even noticing my absence. I was living with a family whose mom was a social worker and was analyzing everything I did. I could barely talk to anyone and I couldn't smile. I was away from home and I just wanted to go home. But I couldn't because my parents didn't want me and my siblings didn't even notice me away.

I curled up in a ball on the floor and cried until there were no more tears left to cry and instead I was just sobbing brokenly. I lay on the floor for another couple of hours until I heard my window being opened from the outside. I peeled my eyes open to see Frank climbing in and falling onto the floor.

He cursed and rolled onto his back before shutting the window. He turned around and looked at my huge eyes. He stared for a minute before letting out a deep sigh and walking over to me. He crouched down by my face and tucked a strand of wet hair behind my ear.

'What's wrong?' he asked softly. I just stared at him without a reply for ages until I felt tears trickling down my cheeks. He tried to soothe me finding it hard when I was lying on the floor. He put one hand under my knees and another under my arms as he lifted me up and carried me over to my bed sitting down with me in his lap.

We sat together until I was starting to drift off. Frank lay me down on top of the covers and spread a blanket over me. I lay my head on the pillow and felt myself on the verge of sleep.

And for the first night in years, I slept soundly till morning.


	6. Chapter 6

The morning of school I was a nervous wreck. I loved school and I didn't want to mess up with people here like I did back home. Yesterday my brother had called and we sat talking for ages until Frank reminded me that I had to get my things together for today.

I sat nervously on the bus next to Frank. Mikey was sitting in front of us and they were both chatting casually even though they kept glancing at me every now and then.

I looked down at what I was wearing. It was a plain white tank top and a black skater skirt. I had fishnet tights on and a pair of black converse with a black cable knit cardigan. I had pulled a black beanie on over my blonde waves to finish the outfit.

People stared at me as soon as I got off the bus and started walking in between Frank and Mikey into the school building to enrol. The receptionist gave me all of the papers which I had to sign in order to come here.

We found my locker and I put a couple of notebooks inside not really needing it at the moment. We all headed to the homeroom and Mikey led me to our seats near the front of the rom. I sat down and started to ignore the boring chatter amongst the cheerleaders and jocks.

'Hi,' an annoying high voice said. I looked up to see Rebecca standing over me. 'I didn't realise that you were the new student here.'

'Yeah,' Frank said answering for me.

'So do you want to have lunch with us? It's always good to make friends aside from your boyfriend, isn't it?' she asked with a warm smile as she twisted around in her cheerleader uniform.

'That's what Mikey's for,' Frank said and I nodded eagerly.

'Okay, well if you change your mind,' she said smiling at me as she walked to the back with her clones. Mikey raised his eyebrows at us.

'So you're still keeping this up?' he asked. We both nodded after having an awkward kind of conversation about it yesterday. We decided to pretend so that neither of us got called names or got hit on by creepy people.

The day in school passed by quickly until we were out of the gates and heading home on the bus. I sat staring out of the window listening to Frank and Mikey babble on for ages.

I was getting light headed and I had a pounding headache from dehydration and lack of food. I knew I was going to have to eat and drink something very soon but I really didn't want to. I didn't want to accept that I was weak.

'Our stop,' Frank said taking my hand and pulling me off the bus. I stared at the scar his hand was firmly around. He didn't seem to notice and I didn't want to mention it either.

He let go of my hand as soon as we got off the bus and it drove away. We walked for the five minutes in silence with me not offering any conversation and Frank growing tired of having to make some.

'You know, when I heard we were taking in a kid from Los Angeles I did not expect them to be anything like this,' he said gesturing to me. 'I was expecting some snooty rich kid who was an absolute bitch.'

'Instead you got this,' I said gesturing to me. He looked at me shocked for a minute before smiling at me and putting his arm around my shoulders again.

'Lucky aren't I?' he smiled.

When we walked inside I was shocked to find the front room filled with a group of people. They were all sitting around with clipboards and business like attitudes as they drank mugs of coffee.

'Hey,' Frank said unsurely.

'Hey darling,' Linda said walking in, in a pair of black slacks and a white button up shirt. Her hair was tied up in a bun on top of her head and she was clutching a mug of coffee. 'Laura, can we borrow you for a while?' she asked with a warm smile. I felt Frank squeeze my shoulders before letting go of me and walking into the kitchen.

'Hello Laura, I'm Greg. I'm a social worker for the government and we'd like to just ask you a few questions, is that okay?' he asked smiling at me. I felt sick again and my head clouded over for a second as I shook it.

'Why not?' a red haired woman asked. I just shook my head again and stumbled backwards until I fell into someone. I felt the arm warp around me and steady me, and I turned to see Frank holding me.

'What's going on?' Frank asked holding me up.

'We just need to ask Laura a few questions dear,' Linda said.

'Oh, um, she doesn't do questions,' Frank explained. 'Or talking really.'

'Well we need her to answer a few things,' Greg said.

'Then you're going to have to wait,' Frank said as I kept backing away.

'Mr Iero, may we talk to you for a few moments then?' Greg asked. Frank sat me down in a kitchen chair and walked in to the front room. Someone shut the door behind him and they all talked quietly. I took the opportunity to run upstairs and lock the bathroom door.

I leant down over the toilet slipping my fingers down my throat until I was sick again. Sooner than last time I ended up with clear sticky mucus that covered my fingers and dripped down my chin. I flushed it away and washed it off hoping to get rid of all evidence of my other life style.


	7. Chapter 7

**Four months later**

So I had been in New Jersey for a while now. I had grown use to everything here and nobody had discovered anything and after the first month they stopped trying to make me talk. Of course I still didn't talk with the exception of Frank. And I still didn't eat and made myself sick but that wasn't going to change easily exactly. But overall I had realised just how much I was in love with Frank. We were still pretending to be girlfriend and boyfriend but now I wasn't as bothered about it as I was at first as all I wanted was this…but real.

'Hey caterpillar, you coming?' Frank called using the nickname he had given me. 'We're heading to the mall.'

'Sure just give me two minutes,' I said tucking away the sketch I was halfway through. He called something out as he walked away. I looked over the piece of paper and frowned at the lack of shadow across the demons face.

It was basically a sketch of a demon standing in a pit of fire but it had stars and the moon in the background to represent something bright and pure in the image which was so out of place it made the demon more terrifying.

I picked up my hoodie and threw it on zipping it up quickly. I was in my usual black shorts and knee high socks. I had a plain black tank top on and a black hoodie with a black beanie. The only things that weren't black where my white Doc Martens.

'Yo Laura! Are you ready?' Frank called. I ran out of my room grabbing my little backpack on the way out and slipping it on. I flew down the stairs and straight into Linda who fell backwards. I blushed a little and jumped to the side letting her up. She gave me a nervous smile and walked upstairs.

Frank ran forward and grabbed my hand pulling me out the front door where Gerard was fidgeting impatiently in his car. Ray was sitting in the passenger seat bobbing his fro along with the music. Frank and I fell into the back seats and Gerard quickly started driving.

'What's going on?' I whispered to Frank.

'Care to explain Gee?' Frank asked as Gerard sped around.

'Mikey has his first date with that Rose girl and she's an absolute bitch so we're making sure nothing bad happens,' Gerard said in a rush. I looked at Ray who just shrugged and nodded along.

'How?' I whispered to Frank. He thought for a while before aiming my question at Gerard who thought even harder than the two of us put together.

'I have no idea. We go ninja style,' he said tapping impatiently on the steering wheel. The light turned green and he lurched us forward again speeding down the road until he turned into the parking lot when he finally slowed down.

We climbed out of the car and walked hurriedly into the mall searching subtly for Mikey. I was quite surprised that the kid had been through two girlfriends in the time I had been here. The first girl from outside the comic store was a total airhead so we convinced him to dump her. Then he found this Rose and he developed a huge crush on her but according Gerard she was a manipulative bitch.

I slipped my hand into Frank's and I felt him squeeze my fingers. I looked over at him and he gave me a sweet smile which made me blush slightly. He squeezed my hand again as we walked through the mall.

Gerard hissed at us all and flapped his hands around in his own little panicked excitement. We walked over to where he was a few metres away from us. He pointed into the café where Mikey looked like he was really having fun with this girl. We all watched for a minute before Ray pointed out that we looked creepy. We all racked our brains for an idea.

'He'll notice us if we just stand here,' I whispered to Frank. He nodded and told the other two what I had pointed out. Ray sighed whilst Gerard fidgeted some more. I looked around for a little before tugging on Frank's hand and pulling him into Hot Topic opposite the café.

'Nice idea,' Gerard smiled even though it was mainly because I had seen a pair of black skinnies on offer after Frank had managed to rip the wholes in the knees until they were absolutely giant.

'I owe you a new pair don't I?' Frank smirked seeing me beeline for the sale rack with the jeans. I nodded as I picked out a size two pair of jeans and held them up to my waist letting go of Frank's hand.

He pulled out his wallet and grabbed fifteen dollars handing it to me. I gave him my closed mouth lopsided smile and I saw his hand with the bills waver for a minute before pressing them into my hand.

'Jeez woman, what size are you?' Gerard asked snatching the jeans from my hand. I reached out and pulled them back even though he had already seen it. He looked at it and then at me and I saw his face fall slightly. I pushed away from Frank who was now talking quietly to a rather distressed Gerard.

I paid for the jeans and clutched the bag as I turned to see Mikey walking in the store with the girl next to him. He looked over at me and smiled at me and I gave him a little wave as he gave Gerard a hard glare.

'Laura, come here,' Frank said holding his hand out to me. I slipped mine into his slowly as Gerard walked off in the opposite direction. He started walking out of the store pulling me with him. 'When was the last time you ate a full meal?' he asked.

'W-what do you mean?' I asked.

'The guys and I have noticed that you hardly eat anything and you're getting really skinny and I do not know a single person who can fit into size two clothing who isn't a model,' he said in a rush.

'I do eat Frank, I just have a fast metabolism,' I said squeezing his hands.

'Okay then, let's go and get something to eat then,' he said.

'We just had breakfast,' I said nervously.

'No, you came downstairs just as we left. You haven't had breakfast again,' he said pulling me to the café which Mikey had just been in with Rose. He kept hold of my hand whilst ordering two lattes and a raisin bagel. He pulled me into the corner booth and sat down opposite me.

He sipped at the coffee and gave me an encouraging smile. I picked up the coffee and inhaled for a second. I slowly raised it to my lips and took a sip of the gorgeous liquid after such a long time. After a few minutes I had drunk half of it feeling it burning my throat as I drank it.

'You need to eat,' he said when I lowered it from my lip leaving me with a milk moustache. He chuckled and I wiped it away quickly pulling the bagel towards me. I slowly picked it apart into tiny pieces.

Once I had done that to a huge chunk Frank picked up the rest of the bagel and wrapped it in a napkin moving it away from me. I looked down at the pieces of bagel on the plate. I picked up one of the raisins and slowly chewed on it for a minute.

'Swallow,' he instructed. With a small bit of trouble I did and he gestured for me to eat some more. After a long while I had finished the chunk I had ripped up. I felt my stomach churning and I put my hand over it. He put the rest of the bagel on my plate but I shook my head defiantly.

'I can't,' I whispered raspily. He looked worried as I jumped to my feet and ran into the rundown ladies room clutching my stomach until I had locked a stall behind me.

I emptied my stomach into the toilet bowl until there was nothing left. I flushed it away and wiped a piece of tissue across my mouth and the toilet seat. I slowly stood up and unlocked the stall walking out and washing out both my mouth and my hands.

I slowly and shakily walked back into the café where the three guys were standing waiting anxiously. I saw Frank's face light up with relief as he ran over wrapping his arms around me in a hug. I hugged him back for a minute loving the feeling of being in his arms.

'Are you okay?' he asked. I nodded feeling light headed again. I wished I had waited until I got home where I could have crashed on my bed after. Instead I was in the middle of the mall until Mikey headed home which probably wasn't for a while longer.

'Do you want to go?' Gerard asked sounding agitated. I shook my head and let go of Frank reluctantly. Frank kept his arm around my waist as I stumbled out of the store with him. They all sat down at the fountain and Frank looked up at me. He pulled me down into his lap and stared at me for a minute wrapping his arm carefully around my waist. He looked really worried and I couldn't figure out why for ages.

'We're heading home,' he declared standing up and taking my hand again. I clutched at the bag from Hot Topic as I stumbled around with Frank. We got outside and he started walking home quickly pulling me alongside him.

Half an hour later we reached the house. He let us in but didn't let go of my hand. I tried to let go of his hand and head into my room but he still wasn't letting go. I walked up the stairs and opened my door walking straight into my room and collapsing onto my bed still with Frank's hand in mine.

'Laura how long have you been anorexic?' he asked. I stared at him and he stared back waiting for my answer. I shook my head and he sighed. 'Please make this easier by talking to me caterpillar.'

'I don't want to talk about it,' I whispered.

'Please? I won't repeat it to anyone, I promise,' he whispered using his other hand to tuck a strand of hair behind my ear. He took my other hand and stared down at our hands and frowned. 'Where's the scar from?'

'Got burnt a few years ago,' I said not entirely lying to him. He nodded and thought about it for a moment before sighing.

'Laura, please just talk to me,' he whispered sounding sad.

'I don't want to,' I whispered. He leant his face closer to mine until his face was four inches away from me.

'Laura, please talk. If I'm going to fall in love with you even more than I already have then I need to know,' he said staring at me intently. I stared back at him feeling my heart beating in my ears.

'Frankie,' I whispered. He brushed his nose against mine still staring into my eyes even though they looked like they were merging into one. I pushed on his chest slightly and he leant away looking disappointed until I sat up next to him and took his hand in mine. I ran my fingers over the scar on my hand and sighed heavily.

'Well, you know how I was kicked out? That was because I wasn't living up to my parents' expectations. I had to be skinny and successful with a major love for the performing arts. I wasn't some popular pretty girl who had guys chasing her despite the fact that my parents owned the most expensive and elaborate condo in the whole of Los Angeles. At my eighteenth birthday they were going to decide whether or not they were going to keep me. But they figured that I couldn't change that much in six months so they got rid of me,' I said honestly.

'What about the burn?' he asked softly.

'When we didn't do exactly what they wanted we would get punished. This was more of an accident but there wasn't much of a fuss over it,' I said shrugging softly. Frank lifted my hand to his lips and kissed the scar pulling his other hand away from mine and running it over mine.

'How could they hurt you?' he whispered. 'So let me get this straight, if you didn't do what they want then they would punish you?'

'Yeah, or if we didn't look how they wanted or acted how they wanted,' I said.

'So you decided to starve yourself?' he asked. I winced and nodded slightly making him let out a long sigh. I took his hand in mine and leant my head against his shoulder. 'Caterpillar, when was the last time you smiled?'

I thought back for a while wondering when I was last happy enough to let a smile touch my lips.

'Before my nana died,' I whispered. He looked at me with the question on his face. 'When I was eleven.'

'Will this make you smile?' he whispered putting his hand on the side of my face. He leant his face closer to mine until our lips were a millimetre away. I moved my head forward and pressed my lips to his kissing him softly. He kissed me back and my insides exploded in fireworks. I felt myself getting lightheaded and pulled away resting my head against his forehead.

For the first time in over seven years, I smiled a genuine smile. I saw the adorable grin spread across his face as he kissed me again. This time it was short and quick.

'I love you Frank,' I whispered.

'I love you too caterpillar,' he whispered. 'You're smile is beautiful Laura, please smile more often.'

'As long as you stay by my side,' I said resting my head in the crook of his neck. I felt him chuckled slightly as he pulled me into his lap. He ran his hand through my hair for a little while until the light headedness clouded my vision.

I slipped into the blackness feeling comfort of the man I was in love with holding me close.


	8. Chapter 8

I twitched my nose at the sound of the annoying beep. I took a long breath in and heard more murmuring around me. The place smelled like cleaner and rubber. It made me feel sick to my stomach. I groaned and shifted my head around. I peeled my eyes open and saw a white room. There was a machine hooked up to me and my arm was feeling tight and stiff. I looked down and saw something sticking out of it.

I groaned again and looked around finding myself in a hospital ward. The curtain was pulled shut and I could hear people around me. I lifted my hand up to my face and pushed the hair away from my face.

The curtain was drawn back and a nurse walked in moving over to a drip that was hooked up to me. She filled it up with a pasty substance and gave me a short smile. I followed the tube to where it was attached to my face and up my nose.

The nurse started explaining my condition to me and the seriousness of the case. I nodded along to everything until she walked out leaving me to stare at the ceiling.

'Hey caterpillar,' a soft but deep voice said. I looked over to see Frank's head poking around the edge of the curtain. He stepped in and walked over to me tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. I leant my head into his hand and took a few deep breaths.

'Hello Laura,' Linda said warmly. I looked up to see her in her work clothes looking smart but still somehow motherly. Frank slipped his hand into mine whilst Linda walked over and acted like the mother I had always wanted.

'Can you explain how I got here?' I whispered to Frank.

'Well, you passed out and I just thought you were tired but when the guys came around they said that you were hardly breathing and your heartbeat was slow so we drove you to the hospital and you've been out for the past four days,' he said squeezing my hand in all the right places. I looked up at him and he gave me a warm smile then pouted for a second.

I leant against his side and felt his arm around my shoulder. He kissed the top of my head and I snuggled into him further as he sat on the edge of the gurney. I saw Linda smiling at us and I couldn't help but blush.

'You know you look really cute when you blush,' Frank murmured making me blush even more. He chuckled and ran his thumb across my cheek a few times until I swore I had turned beetroot.

'Cute?' I squeaked after a second. He laughed and I saw the Linda smile down at us. I coughed a little when I felt the liquid food trickling down the tube in my throat. I felt Frank move away slightly even though I clutched at the sleeve on his hoodie.

'It's okay,' Frank murmured. I saw Linda look worried for a minute until I got used to the uncomfortable feeling. Frank rubbed circles on the back of my hand and I started to get comfortable after a few minutes.

'Thank you,' I whispered. Frank shook his head amused and kicked his shoes off so he could move me around so he was sitting behind me with his legs on either side of me. He leant back into the pillows and wrapped his arms around my waist pulling me with him.

'Comfy?' he whispered to me. I nodded and he rested his chin on my shoulder completely relaxing.

'I'm going to go and make a call,' Linda said finding it awkward in the section of the room. I nodded and gave her a closed mouth smile saving my real one for Frank only.

'You know I couldn't sleep knowing you were here?' he whispered.

'I didn't have that same problem,' I whispered. He chuckled slightly and tapped the tube on my face.

'I'm sorry about this but we had to. So are you mad at me?'

'What? How could I be mad at you?' I squeaked.

'Well I put you in here,' Frank murmured hanging his head. I shifted around a little and twisted my head to his so I could press my lips to the corner of his mouth.

'Frankie I'm never going to be able to be mad at you. I don't care what you did. I love you and that's all that matters to me,' I whispered. He smiled and kissed me properly despite the tube on my face. I kissed him back and felt my insides explode with fireworks again.

'I love you so much,' he smiled down at me. I smiled back at him and he let out a sigh as he stared at my face. 'You know I'm sensing a trend here, every time I kiss you-you smile.'

'Well maybe you'll have to kiss me more often,' I said softly. He kissed me again before biting down on my bottom lip slightly. I pulled away giving him a warning look. 'We're in a hospital Frankie,' I whispered.

'Sorry,' he murmured. I leant back into him just as he bent down to his back pack. 'The guys wanted me to give you this,' he said revealing the latest Batman comic. I gave him my closed mouth smile and he chuckled as I started reading it. He read it over my shoulder and we both laughed at the same points. As soon as I finished it I turned to him and gave him my close mouth smile.

'Give this to the guys,' I said pecking his cheek. He grinned and put the comic on the seat next to me before handing me my sketchbook and pencils. I smiled at him and left it at the end of the bed.

'When am I going to be able to see them?' Frank asked pouting.

'Maybe after a few years,' I said to him. He shook his head and we sat around just talking and messing around until Linda walked in with all three of the guys squeezing into the small space.

They all smiled at us and took various places in seats or on the bed. All four of the guys started off an easy conversation talking giddily until Linda shushed them telling them they had to be quieter.

After an hour a nurse came in with a tube. She walked over to the feeding tube and switched the top so I had food being pumped into me. I winced at the tugging on it as it slid around.

After a little while the guys started to get tired. A few minutes later the nurse came in telling everyone to get lost because visiting hours were over. Everyone promised to come back tomorrow straight after school. I nodded and Frank gave me a quick kiss goodbye which made me try to bite back a smile.

'SMILE! Frank loves you,' he whisper shouted. I smiled at him and he kissed me again. I wrapped my arms around him and he gave me another kiss on the forehead. I sighed and let go of him reluctantly.

Frank turned around at the door and gave me a quick wink and smile before disappearing. But he stayed in my dreams that night and forever will. He's mine and I'm his and that's how it's meant to be.


End file.
